Google’s Pixel phones may finally catch up with the iPhone

“The Tensor wrong Pixels is fundamentally a reflector of Samsung’s Exynos silicon, and truthful are nan problems.” That’s a unsmooth summation of Pixel personification sentiments complete nan past fewer years.

If you’re a Pixel smartphone personification and person encountered problems specified arsenic overheating and mediocre battery, arsenic good arsenic sub-par capacity erstwhile compared against nan Qualcomm processors built atop nan TSMC stack, you get nan gist. Things mightiness alteration adjacent year, for good.

It looks for illustration Google is yet fresh to ditch Samsung, and will alternatively imitate Apple’s attack pinch custom-designed mobile processors. According to Android Authority, which cites soul documents, Google is besides heading to TSMC’s fabrication tract adjacent year, pursuing successful nan aforesaid footsteps arsenic Apple and Qualcomm.

For nan 5th procreation Tensor processor destined for adjacent year’s Pixel 10 series, Google is reportedly tapping TSMC’s 3 nanometer N3E node. To recall, that’s nan aforesaid node Apple deployed for getting its M4 silicon, which now powers nan iPad Pro and will soon look wrong Macs, too.

Andy Boxall / Digital Trends

Qualcomm’s latest Snapdragon 8 Elite is besides reliant connected nan aforesaid stack, and fixed nan monolithic capacity gains it has achieved, nan early of Tensor G5 surely looks exciting. Of course, nan civilization Oryon halfway does nan dense lifting and has helped Qualcomm’s claims of one-upping nan A18 Pro.

While nan Tensor G5 looks group to yet compete pinch its rivals, it looks for illustration nan successor arriving successful 2026 will genuinely spell toed to toed pinch Apple. Both companies are eyeing TSMC’s N3P node for nan A19 (likely appearing wrong iPhone 18) and Tensor G6 (for nan Pixel 11 series), says nan report.

Now, theoretically, shifting to much precocious process nodes intends a boost successful earthy capacity arsenic good arsenic power efficiency. But conscionable really large of a leap 1 gets, depends wholly connected really good nan civilization engineering activity was. In nan lawsuit of processors, it’s a monumental task.

Let maine springiness you a little example. Qualcomm’s Snapdragon processors person lagged down Apple’s A-series processors for nan past fewer years, and they surely aren’t beating nan M-series wrong nan iPad Pro and Air lineup. This year, nan business has reversed, and nan concealed condiment is civilization cores connected nan Snapdragon 8 Elite.

Specifically, nan Oryon cores. Interestingly, there’s a very beardown Apple power here. Not agelong ago, Qualcomm acquired a startup called Nuvia, which was formed by ex-Apple engineers who worked connected Apple silicon. Nuvia licensed Arm tech to make civilization chips.

Can nan Pixel’s Tensor yet drawback up pinch Apple? Only clip will tell. Nirave Gondhia / Digital Trends

Following nan Nuvia acquisition, Qualcomm besides sewage clasp of its intelligence property, specifically nan Phoenix cores. It yet transformed into Oryon, nan successor to Snapdragon Kryo cores that are based connected Arm’s Cortex design. The first-gen Oryon appeared wrong Snapdragon X Elite laptops, which are already beating Apple M3 successful aggregate scenarios.

The second-gen Oryon cores are packed wrong nan Snapdragon 8 Elite package, and according to Qualcomm, they hit Apple’s mighty A18 Pro. Will Google execute nan aforesaid benignant of occurrence pinch Tensor G5 and G6? That remains to beryllium seen.

But TSMC’s process node is noticeably amended than Samsung’s Exynos stack, and that is surely going to bespeak connected nan Tensor G5, and beyond. The ball’s now successful Google’s courtyard.

But there’s a large “if” here. Plans tin alteration down nan road, and if Samsung manages to propulsion a occurrence wrong its semiconductor section and offers a amended deal, Google conscionable mightiness instrumentality pinch its aged partner.

I, for one, can’t hold for nan adjacent Pixel.